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There had been some debate between friends at the Whisky Party whether Highland Park, the northern-most distillery in Scotland, produced scotch that is good, great, or (imagine this), average. I am personally an HP apologist, and I sat down over the last week to taste a handful of their Orkney-born products. One thing that became even more apparent than usual is that HP is anything but usual. With the softest water in Scotland, peated maltings, Orcadian sea breezes, sherry casks, and loads of heather in the stream beds, even their affordable and accessible 12-year is a whisky unto itself.

Highland Park 12 (new packaging)

Alc/vol: 43%Color: deep golden (amber, I think they call it)Legs: med.-large beads, medium-slow dripNose: big heather, sweet flowers, touch of grass, hints of some subtle fruitPalate: malty, honeyed, and smokey, with movement toward soft milk chocolate and berriesBody: oily and pleasant; medium bodied
Finish: subtle but long, very enjoyable without being very intense; a grass-fire smokey endingOverall: a very nice, complex, balanced, and relaxing drop. not challenging, but it never stops offering flavor. So good.

Score: 8.75/10

Highland Park 18 (older packaging)

Alc/vol: 43%Color: copperNose: Lemon zest, saltiness, oak, a touch floral, becoming creamy vanilla with maybe an old blueberry after time in the open air.Palette: toffee, smokey oak, almonds, pine nuts, salt.
Body: firm and just a tad buttery, with flavor happening all over.Finish: still going… touch of smoke turns to intense mocha that just lasts forever.Overall: There’s so much to this; one of the most complex and pleasurable drams around, for my taste.

Score: 9.25/10

Highland Park 25 (older packaging)

Proof: 101.4Color: crimson goldLegs: sm.-med. beads, deathly slow Nose: butterscotch, plums, nuttiness, banannas & fudge, all ensconsed in raw honeyPalette: cinnamon, nutmeg, pepper, fudge, bananna-nut bread, fresh coffee beans, and moreBody: Medium-full; spicy and hot mouthfeel.Finish: Honey into different nuts, oak, etc, that keeps moving while it lasts and lasts.Overall: Wonderous, but tending away from the playful honey and smoke of the 12 and developing the nuttier, earthier flavors present in the 18. Definitely similar to the 18, but with even more complexity (if that is possible) and a depth of flavor all its own. The nose was ridiculous, and I didn’t even have a decent glass for nosing. If I had, it might have been sensory overload.

Score: 9.4/10

Next up: two 13-year single-barrell independent bottlings of Highland Park.